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Post by Yann on Jul 22, 2009 14:17:33 GMT 1
On the face of it that does make a lot of sense - keeping ourselves and our horses fit, busy and mentally stimulated has all sorts of benefits. According to anecodotal evidence the wild horses that live in ideal conditions and roam for 25 miles a day often live to a ripe old age, older than many domestic horses, so there might well be something in that.
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Post by geeup on Jul 22, 2009 14:26:30 GMT 1
very interesting. which book is that? I think it will be interesting to watch what happens, we could do with someone approaching the same lGL but barefoot to compare, then we could have our own IH study. oh yann you have exhausted deep sulcrus thrush havn't you for footsoreness, ours is fighting fit now after I discovered it in april but it keeps recurrring, i think its in the soil, but thats mytheory that wet grass just loves it, as does barefoot as it puts pressure on the frog and bulbs more, well can do but lets not get into showing arguments v barefoot.
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Post by Yann on Jul 22, 2009 14:55:22 GMT 1
Yes, cob was barefoot for 3 years and had pretty decent frogs for most of that time, and they still are shod. Tb's frogs have improved shod ironically, obviously benefitting from getting more work.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti barefoot in the least, would much rather not have my horses shod if it wasn't currently the best option overall for them. I do think it's always worth examining our assumptions about certain things though, life is rarely black and white.
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Post by geeup on Jul 22, 2009 16:49:48 GMT 1
quite agree Yann, only time will tell whos right, even if theres a right. Years ago they bled humans for cures! But the more we discuss ideas and keep an open mind the more we will learn.
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Post by mandal on Jul 22, 2009 18:28:07 GMT 1
Very interesting Jackie... what's the book? lol Well that is right up my street to put it bluntly... I'm almost 100% convinced that we have caused many/most of the problems we find in our horses mainly by the way we keep and feed them. Rant removed!
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Post by geeup on Jul 22, 2009 18:38:47 GMT 1
love the rant mandal, ;D has anyone done studies into the type of foods horses naturaly browse? The type of grass you get in the "wild" compared with grown grass? All I know is that one type is called rye. sorry yann this has moved off topic a bit
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Post by mandal on Jul 22, 2009 18:42:08 GMT 1
LOL cross posted I removed it!! Yes I believe there are studies ongoing as we speak, or have been in recent years. Oh and it depends where they live... many do eat grasses of course.
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Post by geeup on Jul 22, 2009 18:50:52 GMT 1
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Post by geeup on Jul 22, 2009 18:56:56 GMT 1
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Post by taklishim on Jul 22, 2009 21:43:57 GMT 1
yann, leaving aside the rights and wrongs of it why do you think your horse is sound in shoes. As far as I can see all you have done is raise it's foot off the ground by half an inch of metal. ie taken the sole and possibly the frog out of ground/weight bearing contact. Like everyone else I am curious to know what is really going on.
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Post by mandal on Jul 22, 2009 21:53:06 GMT 1
The other thing I believe shoes do is stop/reduce flexion (twisting) in the hoof? I think understand this is one of the major problems with shoeing at a young age the lateral cartilages especially are underdeveloped as the hoof cannot flex with strengthens them so the foots stability is weakened.
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Post by Yann on Jul 22, 2009 22:16:28 GMT 1
I presume it's the same as with boots, reduced hoof expansion, and none of the distortion mandal mentions. I wonder if that's the key? I know KC for one considers it to be very important for hoof development.
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Post by Susan on Jul 22, 2009 23:22:17 GMT 1
Yann I wasnt saying your horse was over weight.. simply how much of a differenec it made to Flynn. It was hindsight of course.. I also think for us that if I had jumped into shoes ( as I was so at the end of my tether as I explained) we would not be where we are now. Its not about what is right or wrong to do, more about what we beleive to be the answers.. I for one think shoes off were the best thing I did. For the many I meet it has been the same. Now June had had a shetland suffer terrible laminitus till in the end the only thing that did make her comfortable was a shoe ...whether they will be for ever.. dont know but it was felt the stability they gave was what she needed. Anyone who knows June will know she didnt do it lightly and have had many many KC courses run from from her place and attended many of them herself she does have a good understanding. It may be that shetlands life before caused so much damage as has been spoken of that man had to do his best and that meant a shoe applied.
Interesting though.. anyone mentioned therma imagine of feet.. as that shows circulation and wondered if anyone had taken shots of a LGL ... and Laminitus ... feet in and out of shoes to see if that would show up any answers
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Post by Yann on Jul 23, 2009 8:07:30 GMT 1
From the sound of it you're exactly where I was before I put shoes back on with Rio the cob, OK on easy surfaces but needs booting on difficult ones. I personally decided that after trying everything for several years I was banging my head against a brick wall with Rio, that all the broken easyboot gaiters and spoiled gallops weren't really getting us anywhere fast.
With her having decent feet anyway apart from the summer LGL I decided there was no reason not to put shoes back on for 6-7 months of the year and have complete peace of mind and a 100% comfortable horse 100% of the time. The fact that the shoes also appear to have curtailed the LGL symptoms for whatever reason and she can now apparently lead a normal life again is an unexpected bonus.
Tess the Tb is a different story, there are no magic wands where her feet are concerned, it's just a case of trying out various least worst options.
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Post by mandal on Jul 23, 2009 10:32:35 GMT 1
The other thing in your circumstances Yann is how much control you are able to have over diet with the facilities at your yard. I'm not saying that getting the diet right is always the answer by any means or that it is even possible in some cases.
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